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2Mar

Devolution Economics: Can local decision making strengthen Britain’s economies?

Hosted by the LSE School of Public Policy and the LSE Growth Lab
In-person and online public event (Old Theatre, Old Building)
Monday 2 March 2026 6.30pm - 7.45pm

In May 2026, two UK nations—Scotland and Wales—face general elections in their devolved assemblies. These elections, together with local elections across England (including in London), raise the possibility of a significant increase in devolved policymaking. In both Scotland and Wales, parties with proposals to devolve power much further are leading in the polls. In England, city regions are gaining powers.

To anticipate this change, the LSE Growth Lab has invited experts and politicians with a first-hand experience of devolution to debate how the future for Britain’s nations should look – what are the benefits of increased devolution, and are there any risks?

Meet our speaker and chair

Rhun ap Iorwerth (@RhunapIorwerth) is the Leader of Plaid Cymru, serving as a Member of the Senedd for Ynys Môn (Anglesey) since 2013, known for his background as a journalist and broadcaster before entering politics. Born in Tonteg, he studied at Cardiff University, worked for BBC Wales as Chief Political Correspondent, and became party leader in June 2023, focusing on uniting the party and promoting Welsh independence.

Graeme Roy (@ProfGraemeRoy) is the current Chair of the Scottish Fiscal Commission (SFC) and Professor of Economics at the University of Glasgow, known for his expertise in public policy, the Scottish economy, and devolution. He previously served as Head of the First Minister's Policy Unit in the Scottish Government. He leads the SFC's role in independently overseeing Scotland's budget, provides economic commentary, and is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh.

Richard Davies (@RD_Economist) is Director of the UK’s Economics Observatory and the LSE Growth Lab. Richard has held various policy roles: he was previously Chair of the Council of Economic Advisors and earlier in his career worked at the Bank of England. Richard is also a keen writer and has been Economics Editor of The Economist; he has published two general-interest economics books, Extreme Economies (2020), and Making Sense of the Modern Economy (2015). Richard’s radio documentary Steel Dragons (2024), exploring the tension between steelmaking in Wales and China featured on BBC R4.

More speakers to be announced shortly

More about this event

The LSE School of Public Policy (@LSEPublicPolicy) equips you with the skills and ideas to transform people and societies. It is an international community where ideas and practice meet. Their approach creates professionals with the ability to analyse, understand and resolve the challenges of contemporary governance.

The Growth Labs at LSE and Harvard are working together to combine policy expertise and academic research in the pursuit of growth-enhancing economic policies around the world. The LSE Growth Lab works at the cutting edge of policy research and brings together practitioners and economists to design and evaluate policies that can generate inclusive prosperity.

Hashtag for this event is: #LSEPublicPolicy

From time to time there are changes to event details so we strongly recommend that if you plan to attend this event you check back on this listing on the day of the event.

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LSE holds a wide range of events, covering many of the most controversial issues of the day, and speakers at our events may express views that cause offence. The views expressed by speakers at LSE events do not reflect the position or views of the London School of Economics and Political Science

From time to time there are changes to event details so we strongly recommend that if you plan to attend this event you check back on this listing on the day of the event.

LSE holds a wide range of events, covering many of the most controversial issues of the day, and speakers at our events may express views that cause offence. The views expressed by speakers at LSE events do not reflect the position or views of the London School of Economics and Political Science.